95-746 Cloud Security

Monday’s, 6:30pm - 9:20pm, Location: Remote/Zoom

Semester: Fall, Mini 2, Year: 2021
Units: 6, Section: A2

Instructor information
Name George Werbacher

Contact Info [email protected] or [email protected]

Office location Remote

Office hours Monday, 5:30 pm - 6:30 pm (email for availability)

TA Information
TA name Harshvardhan Chunawala

TA Contact Info [email protected]; [email protected]

Office location Remote

Office hours Tuesdays (12pm to 2pm); also by appointment.

Course Description
In the age of disruption, digitally transformed products and services have enabled more significant innovation, faster
go-to-market, and reduced capital expenditure. A majority of these technological advancements rely on the cloud.
As a 260 billion dollar industry, with growth expected to rise 14% by 2025, organizations adopt the public cloud at
increasing rates. This increased adoption of cloud computing has adversely affected security practices that are not
fully transferable from on-premise security programs.

This course will provide a foundational understanding of what is required to secure a cloud ecosystem, regardless of
the vendor. The concepts and principles discussed will help bridge the gaps between traditional and cloud
architectures while accounting for the shifting thought patterns involving enterprise risk management. Students who
complete this course will enter into any organization utilizing the cloud and immediately bring value to the
infrastructure and security teams.

Learning Objectives
● Understand core cloud computing concepts and fundamental principles, including standard delivery models
and service designs.
● Understand the foundational security practices that are required to secure modern cloud computing
infrastructures.
● Understand the differences between traditional data security practices and cloud-based data security
methodologies.
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 ● Understand the identity and access management practices of both cloud providers and consumers.
● Understand how to protect data-at-rest, data-in-transit, and data-in-use within a cloud environment.
● Understand standard cloud security network designs and architecture models.
● Understand the complexity of cloud threat actors and techniques used to attack a cloud computing
infrastructure
● Understand the regulatory requirements needed to secure data in the cloud and the difficulties in meeting
those requirements.

Learning Resources
● Required - Practical Cloud Security: A Guide for Security Design and Deployment, 1st Edition (ISBN:
978-1492037514)
● Optional - Cloud Computing Security: Foundations and Challenges, 2nd Edition (ISBN: 978-0367560331)
● Additional Readings - Provided via Canvas & Google Drive

Assessments
The final course grade will be calculated using the following categories:

Assessment Percentage of Final Grade

AWS Labs 10%

Assignments 15%

Mid-Term Exam 25%

Final Exam 30%

Research Paper 20%

● AWS Labs: Labs will be provided via AWS Academy which students will get access to the first week of
class. These labs are all provided within the AWS Canvas course (seperate from the course Canvas).
● Assignments: Assignments will be given periodically throughout the course to provide a more in-depth
understanding of this course’s topics. Assignments will be 3-5 questions that require a specific # of
paragraph responses, and should be treated as graduate-level assignments with proper proofreading and
citations.
● Mid-Term Exam: The Mid-Term Exam will be a multiple-choice exam that will test your knowledge up to that
point of the course. This will be a closed-book exam.
● Research Report: The Research Report will be a 6-8 (individual) or 10-12 (partners) page report based
on a list of topics provided on the first day of class. If you wish to partner up, you must inform me before the
beginning of Lecture 2.
● Final Exam: The Final Exam will be a multiple-choice exam that will test your knowledge of the course in its
entirety. This will be a closed-book exam.
● Optional Final Exam: Students who wish not to take the final exam will have the opportunity to receive a
passing grade (A) on their final exam if they take and pass, one of the following:
● AWS Certified Cloud Practitioner
● AZ-900: Microsoft Azure Fundamentals
● GCP Cloud Engineer
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 Students will be assigned the following final letter grades, based on calculations from the course assessment
section.

Grade Percentage Interval

A 90-100%

B 80-89%

C 70-79%

D 60-69%

R (F) < 60%

Grading Policies
● Late-work policy: Work will not be accepted more than 48 hours after the assigned due date. Late work is
subject to a point deduction. Any work that is submitted after 48 hours will not be reviewed and will
automatically receive zero points.

Course Policies
● Accommodations for students with disabilities: If you have a disability and require accommodations,
please contact Catherine Getchell, Director of Disability Resources, 412-268-6121, [email protected]. If
you have an accommodations letter from the Disability Resources office, I encourage you to discuss your
accommodations and needs with me as early in the semester as possible. I will work with you to ensure that
accommodations are provided as appropriate.
● Statement on student wellness: As a student, you may experience a range of challenges that can interfere
with learning, such as strained relationships, increased anxiety, substance use, feeling down, difficulty
concentrating and/or lack of motivation. These mental health concerns or stressful events may diminish your
academic performance and/or reduce your ability to participate in daily activities. CMU services are
available, and treatment does work. You can learn more about confidential mental health services available
on campus at: http://www.cmu.edu/counseling/. Support is always available (24/7) from Counseling and
Psychological Services: 412-268-2922.

Course Schedule

Date Theme/Topic Assignments Due

10/18/21 Cloud Computing Overview & Security Foundations N/A

10/25/21 Cloud Infrastructure Design and Security N/A

11/1/21 Guest Speaker: TBD Assignment 1

11/8/21 Cloud Asset Management N/A

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11/15/21 Cloud Data Protection Mid-Term Due 11-22
Cloud Identity & Access Management

11/22/21 Cloud Network Security Assignment 2 Due

11/29/21 Cloud Security Threat Management, Compliance & Regulations N/A

12/6/21 Final Exam --